In the original Eastman and Laird Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic, the Mousers were created by inventor Baxter Stockman to rid New York City of its rat problem. Stockman, however, plans to use an army of the bipedal robots to eat away the foundations of buildings, causing them to topple, and hold the city ransom. His assistant, April O'Neil, discovers his plan, and Stockman sends a horde of Mousers after her. Just as she's about to face her end in the jaws of the mechanical terrors, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles swoop in to save her, and thus their famous friendship began!